Rodeo Ground Analysis

The June Lake Citizens Advisory Committee met on Tuesday evening to consider their recommendations on Intrawest's development proposal for the Rodeo Grounds. The CAC recommendations will ultimately be forwarded to the Mono County Planning Commission.

The meeting follows four Peer Review meetings where community members participated in discussions regarding the project's compatibility with the June Lake Area Plan, and how it might be improved. Intrawest made various changes to the original proposal based on community feedback, but lingering concerns remain.

Regardless, now was the time for the CAC to look at the project as it currently stands, and state their opinion on whether it is compatible with the June Lake Design Guidelines.

The meeting began with public comment, and community members took the opportunity to try and persuade the CAC to their side. Several residents asked the CAC to honor the June Lake Area Plan, and not allow the building height variances Intrawest is seeking.

Other residents urged the CAC to approve the proposal in the name of progress, prodding the crowd with a few different versions of the same economic doomsday scenario that would unfold should the project collapse.

Following the public comments, the CAC moved into deliberation and almost immediately were discussing the subject of building heights, and whether or not the project would "preserve June Lake's visual quality."

But instead of taking a vote as to whether or not they believed the proposal complied with the design guidelines, they engaged in an exhaustive discussion that exposed several member's bias for or against the current proposal.

After nearly an hour of deliberation on the first of more than 50 separate points to be considered, a "yes" or "no" conclusion on compliance was not reached. The end result wasn't a recommendation at all, but a request that Intrawest provide a scaled model of the project for them to review.

The meeting went on until nearly 11:00 p.m., and what emerged was a hodgepodge of responses to the proposal. The CAC agreed that some aspects of the proposal met objectives, but where objectives were not met, a simple "no" was not provided. Instead, the CAC made more requests for more changes in the proposal.

A great number of compliance issues have yet to be considered, and the CAC will continue the work at their next meeting.

Share this:

About Benett Kessler

Always interested in writing, Benett was the editor of her high school paper, proceeded to the University of Chicago and then out West where she and John Heston formed Eastern Sierra News Service in Inyo County. They fed film to KNXT in Los Angeles and co-wrote and produced the first daily radio news in the Eastern Sierra. Their work ranged from a published news magazine to the first television newscast. They continued to provide videotaped news to KABC and other news outlets. After a seat on the Mammoth Times board and work as newswriter, Benett formed her own company, Sierra Broadcasters and launched an FM radio station, now KSRW and a broadcast television station, KSRW-TV33. The latest addition - Sierrawave.net. Her company motto: Comfort the afflicted, and afflict the comfortable.